Menomena
Friend or Foe
Barsuk Records

One of my pet peeves as a music listener is when a young band confuses eccentricity for creativity. Bizarreness for the sake of being bizarre is not genius- it is as stale and unimaginative as following the latest mainstream trend. It’s lazy and it lacks creativity. No amount of woodwinds, computer effects, or Alec Ounswarth yelping can attest otherwise.

So when a record emerges that combines exotic elements and strange textures without sacrificing songwriting I can’t help but cry a bit inside. The first record of 2007 that fits this description is Menomena’s wonderfully strange Friend or Foe.

Like the aforementioned lazy hipster bands, Friend or Foe is loaded with layers and layers of instruments, however, the boys in Menomena use them discriminatively to enhance the natural structure of their songs. The bleeps and bloops aren’t the songs themselves. This shows that songwriters Brent Knopf, Danney Seim, and Justin Harris have an understanding of pacing and melody that extends beyond trying to sound cool or quirky.

There are still tons of quirky elements at play here, but like the piano pop of opening track, ‘Muscle’n Flo’, Menomena have more in common with conventional rock than any experimental art movement. ‘Wet and Rusting’ is another stand out track that shows the band’s ability to set limits and keep their sonic palette within the bounds of reason. There is a lot at work but the song never becomes a brain freeze of sugar and excess.

The best way to experience the delicate balance of Menomena is to listen yourself, so grab the mp3 below and check out their Myspace page. It’ll be worth it to hear the first exciting full length of 2007.

[mp3] Menomena - Wet and Rusting
[buy] Menomena - Friend or Foe @ Amazon.com

[stream] Menomena on Myspace